The report would virtually eliminate the doctrine of “fair use.” It would hold content providers such as Prodigy responsible for any copyright infringement found online. And it would make it a crime to distribute devices that circumvent copyright protection … “[It is] a flagrant giveaway, a legal means by which the copyright industries can turn the threat of digital technology into a new opportunity.”
Predictor: Samuelson, Pamela
Prediction, in context:In a 1995 article for Wired magazine, Steve Steinberg writes a brief essay critiquing recent decisions put forth by the Clinton administration in regard to the National Information Infrastructure, quoting Pamela Samuelson of Cornell University. Steinberg says: ”First the Clinton administration went after encryption; now they want to restrict the flow of digital information. In September, the NII Working Group on Intellectual Property released a white paper that calls for altering copyright laws to favor publishers. The report would virtually eliminate the doctrine of ‘fair use.’ It would hold content providers such as Prodigy responsible for any copyright infringement found online. And it would make it a crime to distribute devices that circumvent copyright protection. It’s no surprise the report comes down so strongly on the side of publishers. After all, the committee was chaired by Bruce Lehman, assistant secretary of commerce and former software-publisher lobbyist. The question is whether the Senate and House will bother to read through the 250-page report or just make it law. Pamela Samuelson, a legal expert at Cornell University, calls the report’s recommendations “a flagrant giveaway, a legal means by which the copyright industries can turn the threat of digital technology into a new opportunity.”
Date of prediction: January 1, 1995
Topic of prediction: Controversial Issues
Subtopic: Copyright/Intellectual Property/Plagiarism
Name of publication: Wired
Title, headline, chapter name: Power to the Publishers
Quote Type: Direct quote
Page number or URL of document at time of study:
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/3.12/eword.html
This data was logged into the Elon/Pew Predictions Database by: Anderson, Janna Quitney